If you’ve been eyeing a new MacBook or iPad lately, you may want to brace yourself before checking the price tag. Apple India has rolled out a fresh round of price increases across several of its most popular devices, and this time the jump isn’t a minor adjustment — some models have gone up by as much as 20 to 42 percent compared to their original launch prices. For a brand that has built its identity around premium pricing, this latest move pushes things into genuinely new territory for Indian buyers.
The MacBook price hikes are particularly hard to miss. The MacBook Air 13-inch with the M5 chip, which launched at ₹1,19,900, now starts at ₹1,49,900 — a straight ₹30,000 increase. Its larger 15-inch sibling has climbed from ₹1,44,900 to ₹1,79,900. The 14-inch MacBook Pro with the M5 Pro chip has seen one of the steepest jumps of all, rising by roughly ₹70,000, now retailing at ₹2,99,900 for the entry configuration. Even the MacBook Neo, positioned as Apple’s more budget-friendly laptop option, has gone from ₹69,900 to ₹79,900.
The iPad price changes follow a similar, if not steeper, pattern. The 13-inch iPad Air, once priced at ₹84,900, now costs ₹1,19,900 — a jump of more than 41 percent. The 11-inch iPad Air has moved from ₹64,900 to ₹89,900, while the iPad Pro with the M5 chip has gone from roughly ₹99,990 to ₹1,39,900. For context, some of these tablets are now priced close to entry-level MacBook Air models, which noticeably shifts the value calculation for anyone comparing a MacBook versus an iPad for their next purchase.
Why Is This Happening?
Unlike previous Apple India price revisions, which were often linked to import duties, currency fluctuations, or routine international pricing adjustments, this round has a more specific and unusual root cause: a global shortage in memory and storage chips. According to Apple’s own statement, the explosive growth of AI data centers around the world has triggered an extraordinary surge in demand for memory components — the same chips that go into laptops, tablets, and phones. The company described the speed and scale of this component price increase as something it has never witnessed before.
Apple’s statement said it had been absorbing the rising costs internally for a while, effectively shielding users from the impact, but with memory chip prices continuing to rise at this pace, the company said it had reached a point where it could no longer hold the line, leading to today’s price increases across iPad and Mac lineups. Industry analysts following the consumer electronics space have echoed this explanation, noting that memory manufacturers have been re-allocating a growing share of their production capacity toward AI infrastructure, leaving consumer electronics with tighter supply and higher costs.
And this is not just an Apple India story; these hikes are part of a larger global trend affecting laptops and tablets across the industry, with a number of brands facing similar component-driven price hikes of 40 percent or more. What makes this particularly notable for Indian consumers is the scale of the jump landing all at once, rather than spread out gradually.
How Consumers and Retailers Are Reacting
For everyday buyers, the timing stings a bit. Premium electronics were already a significant investment in India, and these latest hikes push flagship devices further out of reach for a large segment of aspirational buyers — the same audience Apple has spent years trying to win over through expanded retail presence and local manufacturing partnerships with companies like Foxconn and Tata Electronics. A near 42 percent jump on certain iPad models sits awkwardly alongside that broader growth strategy.
Retailers, meanwhile, are recalibrating how they pitch these products to customers. Some are pointing buyers toward seasonal sales events and third-party reseller deals that can temporarily soften the blow, even as official Apple Store prices remain revised upward. Others expect that financing options and EMI plans will become an even bigger part of the sales conversation, since outright upfront purchases are now a tougher ask for many households.
There’s also a quieter shift happening in buyer psychology. With iPads creeping closer to MacBook Air pricing in several configurations, some consumers are reconsidering whether a tablet still makes sense as a lighter, cheaper alternative to a laptop, or whether it’s worth simply stretching the budget toward a full MacBook instead. That decision may increasingly hinge on how well newer software features, like the enhanced multitasking capabilities in recent iPadOS updates, manage to close the long-standing productivity gap between the two device categories.
What This Means Going Forward
For now, Apple hasn’t indicated that these are temporary measures. If the memory chip shortage driving this technology news story continues, similar price pressure could extend to other devices in Apple’s lineup, with some reports suggesting accessories like the HomePod and Apple TV may not be immune either. For Indian shoppers, the practical takeaway is straightforward: if a MacBook or iPad purchase has been on your radar, it may be worth deciding sooner rather than later, since further increases tied to the ongoing global chip crunch can’t be ruled out.
Apple Device Prices Rise in India: What’s Driving the Hike on MacBooks and iPads.
